When All the Stars Fall From the Sky
by dellykins
Summary: The battle is over and all Thundercracker can do is pick up the pieces and hope for the future.


**Title: **When All the Stars Fall From the Sky  
><strong>Verse: <strong>Multi-continuity AU  
><strong>Series:<strong> AU  
><strong>Rating:<strong> M  
><strong>Warnings: <strong>Slash. Major Character Death. Non-Con/Dub-con. Violence. Mech-preg of the spark variety.  
><strong>Pairings:<strong> Prowl/Thundercracker (Mentions of MT/SS, SS/TC/SW, Prowl/Jazz)  
><strong>Summary:<strong> Prowl lives...perhaps.  
><strong>Note:<strong> None really. Other than the fact that I own nothing. Thanks to Chi for lots of suggestions, help, and beta'ing this.  
><strong>Prompt<strong>: . Prowl/TC. Love among the ruins. Survivor's Guilt. Taking Cold Comfort in a warm body. (Peace has finally come but Jazz, SS, and Warp fell during the war)  
><strong>Words:<strong>2391

The battle had not gone their way from the start. Starscream had tried to dissuade Megatron but, like every other time, his words were not heeded. Megatron never did respect his second in command as more than an occasional berth warmer.

They had flown in and things went sour. More than sour. Thundercracker had felt the moment the bond had snapped as Starscream went down. Then Skywarp fell in a hail of Autobot fire, but not before he deactivated the yellow frontliner that had taken Star away from them. It left him reeling and disoriented. He landed and scanned the landscape for his trine-mates' bodies.

He found Starscream easily enough. Scanned him, and saw a flicker. He hoped for a moment, as he landed and ripped into Starscream's chest plates. Hoped and was horrified by what he found. A flickering ghost of a newspark. It was new in every sense of the word, small and barely flickering. It could only have been conceived in the pre-battle festivities. Starscream had always been that way. 'Tomorrow we may dine in the pit, so tonight we shall feast on what the physical realm has to offer.' He had heard Star say that often enough, and he could only whimper at the thought as he looked at Star's cold, and now greying, frame.

He wondered for a moment if he could save it. If it were his, or even Skywarp's there was a chance. The coding would be close enough, it would have a chance. Even that was dashed as he scanned it. The readings came back: Seeker coding. Mechlet. Co-creator: Megatron. Thundercracker's spark would have broken had it not already been in pieces. Had things been different, had Star thought to check, none of this would have happened. Megatron would never have let Star go off into battle and endanger his heir. So many could be's and had been's. Thundercracker stared down at the newspark. He reached for it and could not help but think of the unfairness of it all. In so short of a time the newspark would have been learning to fly. It would have been toddling after its co-creators. As snippy as Star could be, he had always had a soft-spot for sparklings. Most seekers did. It was intrinsic to their coding.

He pictured that 'may have been' world for a moment. Megatron on his throne with the mechlet in his lap. Starscream flying through Decepticon airspace with the mechlet tucked securely in his cockpit. Skywarp aiding him in his first prank against the coneheads. Himself teaching it calm, teaching it balance, teaching it that life was meant for living. Such a thing could have stopped the infighting. Could have healed them all enough to stop the war, perhaps. If only...but in that way lay madness. He could not turn back the hands of time. He could no more fix this than he could bring Star back, so he did the only thing he could. He snuffed the spark out. His own spark numb with one more death on it.

It was dark now, and overly quiet but for a distant sobbing. He followed the sound like some passing traveler following a will'o'wisp to his doom. He stumbled over the muddy ground, over the fallen bodies of his comrades-in-arms. He was the only one left, as far as he knew. The other Decepticons were dead or had fled the battle when it became apparent they would not win this day. When Star had fallen from the sky he had seen Soundwave jolt as if struck. The tape deck had quickly begun to gather his cassettes, his sparklings, and lead them away to safety. He was so lost in the thought he almost fell over the source of the sobs.

Prowl looked up at him, optics unseeing as he cradled the Autobot's saboteur to his chest. The bot was not long deactivated, his armour greying slowly. The tactician's own armor was beginning to take on the grey hue. Thundercracker's spark clenched at the sight. Clenched painfully. He barely considered his own actions as he pushed the incessant mech to the ground, pulling at his chest plates. Prowl didn't fight back. He closed his optics, perhaps even thinking Thundercracker was going to end his misery.

Thundercracker hurt. Hurt so bad he did not think it was possible. He had never understood what a gaping hole in his spark it would leave. It reached out, demanding something to fill the monstrous hole. Someone, anyone, and in that moment had Megatron been near he would have even tried to pry open that mech's spark. Not that that would happen. He had seen Megatron deactivated with his own optics. His spark fluttered in his chest, reaching for his trine-mates', reaching for what was no longer there.

His spark hurt, but it still reached out for Prowl's, and then it was nothing but relief. Prowl's had been sputtering, but it grew stronger by the minute. By the time Prowl realized, finally, what was happening and began to struggle it was too late, far too late. Their sparks twined together, the pieces filling in, mingling. Parts of Thundercracker's spark taking the place where once Jazz had been.

"No, No, No," the tactician screamed, "Let me go! Let me GO!" Then screamed louder when the overload hit them both.

Thundercracker held on tightly, riding the wave. His own scream cut short, it came out as a static filled pause until finally the world went black.

He booted back up to silence, and then the faintest whimper from Prowl. It took him a moment to realize the other mech was crying silently.

"Shhhh...he's gone." Thundercracker sighed, not moving, their chests still pressed together. He resolutely ignored the mud that smeared both of their frames.

Prowl keened and tried to squirm out from underneath him, his cries becoming more hysterical by the moment. "He's gone, he's gone. Just-"

"Stop it, I'm not going to let you die." Thundercracker said, pressing in to Prowl's processor, he forced his own calm onto the mech. "Stop it. You are going to hurt yourself more."

Thundercracker ex-vented. His own processor clearing enough to assess the situation. His spark twinged faintly, falling into sync with the smaller mech's. Thundercracker vented again and finally pushed himself off the ground. He looked down at Prowl for a moment, and grabbed him before he could scramble for Jazz's body.

"No, please, no. I can't leave . Nooooooooooooooo." Prowl howled as Thundercracker picked him up, and held onto him tightly. "We will come back for him. I promise. We need to get you to a medic first"

Thundercracker walked, and finally Prowl sagged against him, too tired to fight. He off-lined his optics and let himself cycle down into recharge. It was just the easier thing to do.

OoOoOoOoOo

Prowl was jostled awake. Thundercracker's grip on his armor nearly tight enough to leave dents.

"Put him down." Ironhide yelled, levelling his plasma cannon at Thundercracker.

"Shoot me, and you kill us both."

"I'm a better shot than that."

"Stupid mech. We are bonded." Thundercracker ground out. "You kill me and he dies too. I didn't go to all of the trouble of saving him for you to slagging off-line him anyway."

Prowl closed his optics and wished Ironhide would just shoot. "Shoot him Hide."

"Shut up, Prowl." Thundercracker growled, his patience wearing thin. "Get your medic. I'm not lying. Please."

OoOoOoOoOo

Thundercracker was lead through the Ark, guns at his back, but he ignored them, focusing on Prowl. It was difficult to keep his bondmate calm until they finally reached the medbay, and the grumpy mech within.

Ratchet glared at the seeker, glared more once both mechs were sitting on the medical berth. He watched how Prowl clung to Thundercracker for comfort, and the way Thundercracker held on to him like he was the one stable thing in this world. It broke Ratchet's spark to see Prowl like this. He pushed it aside. "Open up, I need to see your sparks."

OoOoOoOoOo

Prowl was in recharge, Ratchet had sedated him, much to Thundercracker's relief. He was not taking any of it well, and had begged Thundercracker to kill him. He had cried, and begged, then cried some more. When it became apparent that Thundercracker would not end his misery he had turned to the Autobot's premier sniper. The seeker had been too wrapped up with his new bondmate to even notice the other Praxian sitting quietly in a corner of the room.

"_Blue. Baby Blue. if you ever loved me I need you to make this pain go away," the normally stoic mech had never sounded so very broken. The few pieces of Thundercracker's spark that were left shattered into even smaller splinters. _

_The other Praxian began to stroke the tactician's helm fondly, soothingly. An act born of many vorns of practice. "Carrier, you know you don't mean it. Sire's...passing, is very hard on us all but you know we need you. I need you. Who am I supposed to turn to now that Sunny is gone if I lose you __too?"_

It could only get hoped for both of their sakes. He snapped back to attention as Optimus Prime began to speak.

"This is an unusual situation." The leader of the Autobots said, watching the seeker.

"I am well aware." Thundercracker said, looking away.

"Ratchet tells me the bond is strong. It saved Prowl's life."

Thundercracker could only nod, "It did."

Optimus nodded, "There are some things we will require of you..."

"Weapons? I figured. I-I have some terms myself." He fidgeted in a very un-Thundercracker-like manner for a moment as Optimus waited for him to speak. "Let me put them to rest, please. I-please. And the newspark. I want to honour it as well."

Optimus blinked at the mech for a moment. Few things surprised him, but this did. "Newspark?"

Thundercracker looked away, his composure crumbling. "Star was carrying. He died not knowing. He had tried for so many vorns to spark. He-he had thought he was sterile. He had a mutated spark, a recessive trait of his line. It kept rejecting the merges. Sparks would not form, or if they did they would dissipate within hours. "

"Surely you could have saved it?"

"It-as much as I wished it to be, it was not mine. The sire was Megatron. Its energy was too different from mine. Ironic, isn't it? You not only destroyed your greatest enemies, but their heir as well."

"I would never knowingly-It's so difficult-" Optimus shook his head, his hand unerringly catching the medics. They shared a brief look, one filled with old pain, before turning back to him. "Think what you may of me, Thundercracker, but I know that loss, and I would not wish it on any bot."

OoOoOoOo

Going through the battlefield retrieving bodies was trying for all parties involved. Thundercracker helped, his own head not in it. Prowl, at least, was still back at the Autobot's infirmary. He did not need to see this. He was too fragile. So fragile Thundercracker feared he would shatter completely at any moment. Ratchet said repeatedly he gave Prowl too little credit.

He watched the red frontliner approach Skywarp's body and begin to kick it. Rage welled up inside him. "What are you doing?" Had he been armed he would have shot the other mech without a thought. He was not though. It was the first thing the Autobot's had taken from him. He had not protested. He understood that. What was before him though, he did not. "Is this how you treat the honoured dead?"

"He killed Sunny."

"Yes, and your Sunstreaker killed our Air Commander, who was with newspark. Should I not shed your energon for that? 'That heaven finds means to kill your joys with love. And I for winking at your discords too, Have lost a brace of kinsmen: all are punish'd.'"

Sideswipe blinked at him, his mouth opened, and for a moment he looked like a Terran fish to Thundercracker. "Did you just quote Shakespeare at me?"

Thundercracker shrugged, looking away. "Megatron liked it." He said quietly. "He used to recite it to Star. And Star would, in turn, read it to us sometimes. We aren't...weren't the monsters you thought us to be. Star was a Prince. The last Prince of Vos, and Warp and I had been part of his court before this stupid war. Megatron loved poetry, Warp loved Colbert. They would both sing-Star and Warp-and drive Megatron up the wall. But-" He shook his head, looking away, and feeling ill. "They loved the Holidays here. Don't get me wrong. The best way to conqueror a species is to know it, but it went a bit beyond that. You had to see Warp and Star sing 'There are Much Worse Things to Believe In.' It...they sang it until we all wanted to strangle them..."

"But you didn't." Sideswipe said, looking away.

"No. We didn't." Thundercracker said softly. He carefully picked up Warp's body and made his way back to the base.

OoOoOoOoOo

Thundercracker held Prowl against his chest, holding him tightly despite the Praxian's shivering. There were good days, and there were bad days. Even through the bad days he could not say he regretted his choice to save the other mech.

It had soothed his own spark, and had saved Prowl's. He still mourned his trine-mates and the newspark. A small part of him always knew they would not see the end of the war unscathed. He had thought it would just be Star. He had always thought Warp would pull through it. Warp had been resilient. He had thought they would be together, but, perhaps, Warp knew something he did not. He had always put off Thundercracker from bonding. The time was never right, and then it was far too late.

He came back to the present, his attention going to his bondmate. Pieces of his own spark filled some of the wounds left by Jazz's passing. It wasn't perfect. Prowl was still frail. Prowl still cried himself into recharge. Fluxed. It was getting better. Someday Prowl might even forgive Thundercracker for saving him. Thundercracker could only hope. Could only pray.

And he did.


End file.
